Aston Villa were the first club to ‘show an interest’ in Atletico Madrid’s Joao Felix this summer and could be presented with a late chance to get him as the offers he wanted to have not arrived.
That’s according to AS, who say the Portuguese forward is yet to get the move away from the Wanda Metropolitano he is looking for after turning down Aston Villa earlier in the window.
The newspaper explains that the forward prepares a Plan B, which is a loan move to Saudi Arabia, if he cannot finalise a move to Barcelona in the last ten days of the summer transfer window.
Felix returned to Atletico this summer after his loan spell at Chelsea, who turned down the chance to sign him permanently, but both parties want to separate if they can.
Aston Villa were the first of the interested clubs to ‘show an interest’ in signing him but they came up against the player’s wishes to play in the Champions League.
They can’t offer that but offers from such clubs have not been forthcoming. In fact, no offers have arrived for Felix at all.
That situation hasn’t changed in the final days of the window and Felix has been ostracised from Diego Simeone’s squad, not playing a minute so far and waiting for offers that don’t appear likely to arrive.
He wants to go to Barcelona but if that can’t happen, he instead plans a temporary move to Al-Hilal on a year long loan deal.
That makes little sense, though, given the player was determined to secure Champions League football for next season and the Saudi Arabian side can’t offer that.
Neither can Aston Villa but they can offer European football in the form of the Europa Conference League, and the chance to work under Unai Emery, a man who could certainly revive Felix’s dwindling career.
It’s something to keep an eye on over the next 10 days, with it certainly worth Villa’s time to test the waters after being rejected earlier this summer and following Philippe Coutinho’s injury.
